Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

Post-Game Content

Continue your pirate adventures in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag. This guide covers remaining activities and content after completing the main story.

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Post-Game Content

Congratulations, Captain! You've navigated the treacherous waters of the Caribbean, plundered countless riches, and forged your legend as the most feared pirate of the Golden Age. But the adventure doesn't end with the credits roll. Black Flag offers a wealth of content to keep you sailing, fighting, and exploring long after you've completed the main story. This guide will walk you through the most rewarding post-game activities, ensuring you squeeze every last drop of piratical glory from your journey.

Completing Your Collection

One of the most satisfying post-game endeavors is achieving 100% synchronization. This involves more than just finishing the main missions; it requires meticulous exploration and completion of every side activity. Here's a breakdown of what to prioritize:

Collectibles

  • Animus Fragments: Scattered across every island and city, these glowing blue fragments are essential for 100% synchronization. Use your map to identify areas with missing fragments and systematically clear them. Some require clever parkour, while others are hidden in plain sight.
  • Chests: Treasure chests contain Reales, crafting materials, and sometimes even unique outfits or weapon designs. They are marked on your map once you synchronize viewpoints. Prioritize opening these to fund your ship upgrades.
  • Shanties: These musical notes, carried by gusts of wind, will add new songs to your crew's repertoire. Chasing them can be a fun, albeit sometimes frustrating, mini-game. Listen for the distinct melody to pinpoint their location.
  • Mayan Stelae: These ancient stone tablets are found on various islands. Solving their environmental puzzles reveals the location of a Mayan Key. Collect all 16 Mayan Keys to unlock the powerful Mayan Outfit, which deflects bullets.
  • Treasure Maps: Found in chests, on defeated enemies, or as rewards for certain missions, these maps lead to buried treasure. The treasure often includes significant amounts of Reales and rare crafting plans.

Side Activities & Missions

  • Assassin Contracts: Available at Pigeon Coops in various towns, these contracts task you with assassinating specific targets. They offer good Reales and contribute to your overall completion.
  • Naval Contracts: Similar to Assassin Contracts, but these involve naval combat. Sink specific enemy ships or clear out naval blockades for rewards and naval experience.
  • Privateer Missions: Found in taverns, these missions often involve escorting convoys, raiding plantations, or sinking rival ships. They provide a good source of income and naval combat practice.
  • Whaling and Hunting: Head to designated hunting grounds on the map to harpoon whales and hunt land animals. The resources gained are crucial for crafting upgrades for Edward and the Jackdaw.
  • Diving Bell Locations: Explore the underwater wrecks using your diving bell to discover treasure chests, Animus Fragments, and crafting materials. Be wary of sharks and moray eels!
  • Forts: Conquer all 11 forts scattered across the map. Each fort, once captured, reveals new areas on your map, including collectibles and naval activities. They also provide fast travel points.

Upgrading the Jackdaw to the Max

Your ship, the Jackdaw, is your lifeblood in the Caribbean. Post-game is the perfect time to fully upgrade every aspect of her. This will make naval combat a breeze and allow you to take on the most formidable legendary ships.

  • Hull Strength: Essential for surviving prolonged engagements. Prioritize upgrading this first.
  • Broadside Cannons: Increase your firepower significantly. Aim for the Elite Broadside Cannons.
  • Round Shot Strength: Boosts the damage of your standard cannonballs.
  • Heavy Shot Strength: Crucial for quickly destroying enemy hulls.
  • Chain Shot Strength: Improves your ability to disable enemy ships for boarding.
  • Swivel Guns: Upgrade these for faster target acquisition and increased damage against weak points.
  • Mortars: Devastating against distant targets and forts. The Elite Mortars are a game-changer.
  • Ram: Increases damage when ramming enemy ships.
  • Storage Capacity: Allows you to carry more cannonballs, heavy shot, and other ammunition.
  • Crew Quarters: Increases your maximum crew size, which directly impacts your ship's health and repair speed.

To acquire the necessary resources (Metal, Wood, Cloth), focus on raiding convoys, plundering enemy ships, and completing naval contracts. The Elite upgrades often require rare crafting plans found in buried treasure or specific diving locations.

Conquering the Legendary Ships

The ultimate naval challenge in Black Flag awaits you in the form of five Legendary Ships. These behemoths are incredibly powerful and require a fully upgraded Jackdaw and expert naval combat skills to defeat. Each ship has unique attack patterns and weaknesses:

  1. El Impoluto (Northwest of Kingston): A fast, heavily armored ship that rams aggressively. Keep your distance and use heavy shot and mortars.
  2. The Royal Fortune (Southeast of Kingston): Accompanied by two smaller frigates, this ship has powerful broadsides. Focus on disabling the frigates first.
  3. La Dama Negra (South of Serranilla): A heavily armored man-of-war with powerful mortars. Stay close to avoid her mortar fire and pepper her with heavy shot.
  4. HMS Prince (Northeast of Principe): A massive warship that fires a continuous stream of cannonballs from its stern. Stay out of its wake and hit its broadsides.
  5. The Brothers-in-Arms (South of Eleuthera): Two identical frigates that work in tandem. They will try to sandwich you. Focus fire on one ship to eliminate it quickly, then deal with the other.

Defeating all Legendary Ships rewards you with a significant amount of Reales and the "Devil of the Caribbean" achievement/trophy. More importantly, it solidifies your reputation as the most formidable pirate in the seas.

Kenway's Fleet Management

Don't forget about Kenway's Fleet, the mini-game accessible from the captain's cabin on the Jackdaw or any harbormaster. This allows you to send captured ships on trade missions, earning you Reales and unique rewards. Post-game, you should aim to:

  • Capture and repair the best ships: Focus on Man-o'-Wars and Frigates for their high cargo capacity and combat ratings.
  • Unlock all trade routes: Successfully complete missions to open up new, more lucrative routes.
  • Clear all naval blockades: Send your fleet on combat missions to clear blockades, increasing the safety and profitability of your trade routes.

Kenway's Fleet is a passive income generator that can significantly boost your Reales, allowing you to quickly purchase any remaining upgrades or cosmetic items.

Unlocking the Templar Armor

If you haven't already, completing the Templar Hunt missions is a rewarding post-game activity. These missions are unlocked by finding specific Templar Keys. There are five Templar Keys in total, each found by completing a unique side quest chain. Once all five keys are collected, you can open the Templar Armor chest located in the Great Inagua hideout, granting you the powerful Templar Armor set.

  • Templar Key 1: Nassau (Opia Apito mission chain)
  • Templar Key 2: Havana (Anto mission chain)
  • Templar Key 3: Kingston (Rhona Dinsmore mission chain)
  • Templar Key 4: Andreas Island (Hattian mission chain)
  • Templar Key 5: Pinos Isle (Hilary Flint mission chain)

By systematically tackling these post-game challenges, you'll not only achieve 100% completion but also experience every facet of Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag's rich and expansive world. Happy hunting, Captain!